Diane Joy Schmidt is a regular correspondent and columnist for the New Mexico Jewish Link, the Gallup Independent, and a recent contributor to Hadassah Magazine. Her columns and articles have received awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, the American Jewish Press Association's Rockower Awards, the Arizona Press Association, and the Native American Journalists Association. She grew up on Chicago's North Shore in the traditions of Reform Judaism, is anchored by her memories of the fireflies at Union Institute camp and the Big Dipper over Lake Michigan, and is an admirer of all things spiritually resonant.